Dummies 'cut' cot deaths

Using a dummy during sleep can reduce a child's risk of cot death, according to new research.

A study by researchers in California found that using a dummy during sleep appeared to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in babies.

Writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) Online, the scientists claim that, after adjusting findings for known risk factors, use of a dummy during sleep was associated with a 90 per cent reduced risk of SIDS compared with infants who did not use a dummy.

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The reduced risk also seemed to be slightly stronger when an infant was in a risky sleep environment, such as sleeping prone or on the side, sleeping with a mother who smoked, or sleeping on soft bedding.

The study involved interviews with mothers or carers of 185 infants who died and those of 312 randomly selected controls matched for race/ethnicity and age.

The population based case-control research took environmental factors related to sleep and other risk factors into account. The study demonstrated that the reduced risk was consistent across a wide range of social and economic characteristics and risk factors.

The authors concluded: "Use of a dummy is associated with a substantial reduction in the risk of SIDS. Our results also provide some evidence that use of a dummy may reduce the impact of other risk factors for SIDS, especially those related to adverse sleep conditions."

The researchers suggest that "the use of dummies may be an effective strategy for public health intervention".

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